The Indian Express: Mumbai: Monday, July 16, 2018.
In a bid to
bring down the cost of constructing the proposed statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji
in the sea off Mumbai, the Maharashtra government has tweaked the design so
that the height of the warrior king is now 7.5 metres shorter than originally
proposed, although the sword he wields will be taller than in the original
design.
The project,
a flagship programme of the BJP-led government in the state, saw Prime Minister
Narendra Modi lay the foundation stone for the memorial and a ‘jal poojan’ in
December 2016.
Documents
accessed by The Indian Express under the Right to Information (RTI) Act show
that the state government had originally proposed a statue standing 121.2
metres tall, including the sculpture of the king on his horse together
measuring 83.2 metres, and a 38-metre sword. The equestrian statue is to be
cast in bronze on a pedestal, designed as a multi-storey structure, standing
88.8 metres tall. In total, the project height was 210 metres.
This year, as
part of cost-reduction measures on the project, the height of the sculpture of
the warrior king on his steed has been reduced to 75.7 metres and the length of
the sword raised to 45.5 metres, maintaining the statue height of 121.2 metres.
 |
| As part of cost-reduction measures on the project, the height of the sculpture of the warrior king on his steed has been reduced to 75.7 metres and the length of the sword raised to 45.5 metres, maintaining the statue height of 121.2 metres. |
The original
base length of the sculpture was also proportionally reduced to maintain the
aesthetic view of the statue. This has resulted in reduced anticipated use of
bronze, tertiary steel elements and armature. Overall, these changes and a few
others have led to a cost reduction of Rs 338.94 crore.
A week after
the government issued a Letter of Acceptance for the project to Larsen &
Toubro, opposition parties had alleged the state government had reduced the
height of the Shivaji statute in order to cut costs, while increasing the
pedestal height. The government denied the allegations, maintaining that the height
of the statue remains 121.2 metres. “I have written to the consultant, the
contractor and PWD officials asking for a presentation on how cost reduction
has been achieved,” said Vinayak Mete, legislator and Chairman of the Project
Implementation and Monitoring Committee for the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Memorial.
Meanwhile,
the state government last month decided that the total height of the project
would be 212 metres, making it the tallest statue in the world. The equestrian
sculpture portion will now be made proportionately taller by 2 metres and a
proposal submitted to the MoEF for clearances, said sources in the PWD.
On March 1
this year, the state government issued a Letter of Acceptance to L&T for
the project worth Rs 2,500 crore plus GST, taking the total project cost to Rs
2,800 crore. In December last year, the government decided to go in for cost
optimisation measures to reduce the total project cost from Rs 3,826 crore, the
sum originally quoted by L&T. Various cost optimisation measures have led
to cost reduction to the tune of Rs 1,026 crore.
Records show
that apart from cost reduction in the statue itself, cost has also been reduced
in other ways. The government has, for example, deferred the first year
operation and maintenance and training cost of the project. Some deleted items
include a VIP jetty and a safe house for VIPs.
The marine
works broadly comprise breakwaters, island reclamation, a sea wall designed to
appear as a historic fort wall, a passenger jetty, etc. The pedestal will house
various visitor management spaces, a museum and art gallery, food court and
viewing deck.
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